Writing implements

ABSTRACT

A WRITING IMPLEMENT HAVING A MARKING CORE AND A PROTECTIVE TUBE WITH A NOSE CONE AT ONE END FOR GUIDING THE MARKING CORE OUT OF THE TUBE, A STOP MEANS ABUTTING THE END OF THE CORE AND HAVING PRONGS ENGAGING IN THE WALL OF THE TUBE TO RESIST WRITING PRESSURE AND TWO PAIRS OF OPPOSED FINGERS GRIPPING THE MARKING CORE TO CENTRALIZE SAME.

United States Patent Lindsay Geoffrey Moojen Stockport, England (c/o Lloyds Bank Limited, 16-18 Great Underbank) 858,442

Sept. 16,1969

June 28, 1971 Sept. 17, 1968 Great Britain inventor Appl. No. Filed Patented Priority WRITING IMPLEMENTS 8 Claims, 7 Drawing Figs.

Field of Search [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 613,452 l [/1898 Lippincott 401/84 645,356 3/1900 Foster 401/92 1,637,545 8/1927 Bosworth 40i/80X Primary Examiner-Lawrence Charles AttorneyHolman, Glascock, Downing and Seebold ABSTRACT: A writing implement having a marking core and a protective tube with a nose cone at one end for guiding the marking core out of the tube, a stop means abutting the end of the core and having prongs engaging in the wall of the tube to resist writing pressure and two pairs of opposed fingers gripping the marking core to centralize same.

WRITING IMPLEMENTS This invention relates to writing or marking implements such, for example, as crayons, oil pastels, chalks, pencils, paints and other similar writing, painting and drawing materials, all hereinafter and in the claims referred to simply as writing implements for the sake of convenience.

The invention is particularly concerned with writing implements which have an elongate marking core, such for example as lead, wax or crayon (hereinafter for the sake of simplicity simple called a crayon") enclosed in a protective sheath or tube such, for example, as a paper tube since such crayon cores are readily breakable, the crayon having a cross-sectional area or diameter less than the internal cross-sectional area or diameter of the tube. Such writing implements are hereinafter and in the claims called writing implements of the kind aforesaid."

The crayon is pushed out of the protective tube as required, but means must be provided to prevent the crayon returning into the tube under writing pressure.

Various stop means embedded in the butt of the crayon with tongues which dig into the protective tube wall preventing return movement of the crayon have been proposed, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a simple but effective stop means for use in a writing implement of the kind aforesaid to prevent movement of the crayon into the tube while the crayon is being used.

According to the present invention there is provided a stop means for use in a writing implement of the kind aforesaid comprising a base against which an end of the crayon can butt, at least two fingers integral with the base for gripping opposed portions of the crayon and engaging the wall of the protective tube housing the crayon, and tongue means integral with the base and adapted to dig into the tube wall such as to resist movement of the crayon into the tube under writing pressure while permitting forward movement.

Also according to the present invention there is provided a writing implement of the kind aforesaid comprising a crayon housed in a protective tube with a stop means as defined in the immediately preceding paragraph engaging the rear end of the crayon and the tube wall and a tapered nose at the writing end of the tube to centralize the crayon in the tube and to hold the crayon firmly during use.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view in the fiat of stop means in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional plan view of a writing implement in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view on the line III-Ill of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view on the line IV-IV of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary perspective, part-sectional view of the writing implement showing the nose cone;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary perspective view showing a modified nose cone; and

FIG. 7 is a detail view ofa modification of the stop means.

The stop means for use in a writing implement of the kind aforesaid comprises a metal stamping of cruciform shape with two oppositely directed long fingers 10 extending out from a central area 11 which constitutes the base of the stop means, one from each side. There are two oppositely directed short fingers 12 also extending out from the central base 11 (again one from each side) and disposed at right angles to the long fingers 10. At the junction of the long and short fingers 10 and 12 with the base 11 are short pronged tongues 13 bisecting the right angle between each adjacent long finger 10 and short finger 12.

To configure the stop means for use with a crayon 14 and protective tube 15, each short finger 12 which is ,V-notched as indicated at 16 at its outer and free end is bent upwardly and then inwardly and downwardly through an angle of, say, I 10, so that its notch sides partially surround and dig into the crayon 14 whose end butts the base 11 of the stop means (see FIGS. 3 and 4).

Each long finger 10 is bent upwardly and outwardly to an angle of, say, 36, and substantially midway up its height is bent inwardly as indicated at 17 with its free end bent and dished as indicated at 18 so that it can engage the surface of the crayon 14(see FIG. 3).

The pronged tongues 13 are bent or inclined downwardly relative to the base 11 (see FIGS. 3 and 4).

The crayon l4 butting the base 11 of the stop means is therefore engaged by the teeth of and gripped in the notches 16 of the short fingers l2 relatively close to the base 11, and is gripped by the dished surfaces 18 of the long fingers 10 relatively far from the base 11 with the pronged tongues 13 directed downwardly and outwardly from the base 11, the angle of the tongues 13 being selected to cause the tongues to resist rearward movement of the crayon while not impeding forward movement when desired.

When this assembly of crayon and stop means is disposed in the protective tube 15, of say paper, thepronged tongues 13 dig into the wall 19 of the tube 15 to resist rearward movement of the crayon 14 into and relative to the tube 15 under writing pressure while permitting forward movement as and when required, and the long and short fingers l0 and 12 engage the tube wall 19 to centralize the crayon 14, and the short fingers 12 resist forward withdrawal movement of the crayon 14. The downward bending of the tongues 13 is effected as the assembly is forced into the rear end of the tube 15, thus ensuring spring pressure of the tongues 13 against the tube wall at all times.

It will be manifest that the crayon and stop means is pushed through the tube by an elongate plunger, such for example as a pencil, to expose fresh crayon as it is used.

The writing end of the tube 15 is fitted with a nose cone 20 which may be formed of wood with a bore 21 having a countersunk lead-in 22. This nose cone 20 fits into the end of the tube 15.

An alternative nose cone 23 (see FIG. 6) is vacuum formed or moulded hollow synthetic plastics material and fits over the end of the tube 15.

The nose cone 20 or 23 serves to centralize the crayon 14 in the tube 15 and to hold it firmly during use.

In a modification (see FIG. 7), the long fingers 10 of the stop means are not reentrant at their free ends but are simply dished and angled as indicated at 24 to engage round the crayon surface.

The stop means may be formed in any convenient material, and by any convenient manner. However, a metal stamping folded or bent to the required configuration is preferred.

The writing implements may be assembled by hand, or there may be automated assembly with magazines of crayons, protective tubes and stop means.

Iclaim:

1. A stop means for use in a writing implement of the kind aforesaid comprising a base against which an end of the crayon can butt, at least two fingers integral with the base for gripping opposed portions of the crayon and engaging the wall of the protective tube housing the crayon, and tongue means integral with the base and adapted to dig into the tube wall such as to resist movement of the crayon into the tube under writing pressure while permitting forward movement.

2. A stop means as claimed in claim 1, comprising two pairs of fingers integral with the base for gripping the crayon, one pair lying in a plane normal to a plane containing the other pair and with one pair for gripping diametrically opposed portions of the crayon nearer the base than the other pair.

3. A stop means as claimed in claim 2, in which each of said one pair of fingers has a portion substantially coplanar with the base merging with an upwardly directed portion merging, in turn, with a downwardly and inwardly directed portion V- notched at its end which digs into and grips the crayon.

4. A stop means as claimed in claim 2, in which each of said other pair of fingers is bent outwardly of the base then inwardly and has at its upper and free end a dished portion for gripping thecrayon.

5. A stop means as claimed in claim 4, in which the dished portion is constituted by bending the free end of the finger inwardly in a return disposition.

6. A stop means as claimed in claim 4, in which the dished portion is an upward extension of the finger.

7. A stop means as claimed in claim 1, in which the tongue means is constituted by a pronged tongue at the junction of each adjacent pair of fingers, which tongue is directed outwardly and downwardly of the base.

8. A writing implement of the kind aforesaid comprising a protective tube, a crayon slidably housed in the tube, a stop 

